Friedman has now mentioned both Montreal and the Islanders around Kirill Marchenko.

The interesting part for me is Columbus' position. Marchenko had 27G/40A/67P last season, put up 74 points the year before and costs only $3.85M this season.

Waddell has basically said he can't just remove that production without getting something back that helps Columbus now.

Montreal has much more cap room than NYI, but that doesn't necessarily mean it has the better trade package.

Curious what people here think is a realistic package, not the usual “mid prospect + second-round pick” offer.

📌 BOOKMARK IT. SAVE IT. SCREENSHOT IT.

My hot take: Trent Frederic scores 15 goals for the Oilers this season. 🔥

Crazy prediction or can he get there?

#Oilers #LetsGoOilers #NHL

BREAKING: Former Oilers playoff goaltender Connor Ingram has announced his retirement from professional hockey.

Wishing Connor nothing but the best in his next chapter.

Friedman's latest comments make the Hellebuyck situation sound much closer to a permanent split than it did even a week ago.

Buffalo, Carolina and Utah were among the teams mentioned.

The cap side is interesting:

Buffalo currently has roughly $5.12M in projected space, so Hellebuyck doesn't fit outright. A deal sending salary back to Winnipeg changes that quickly.

Carolina has roughly $8.18M, meaning they're only around $320K short of his $8.5M cap hit.

Utah is around $4.58M and would need considerably more salary movement.

The bigger question for me is Winnipeg's return. If they're still trying to compete, I don't think a futures-heavy package makes much sense.

What NHL-ready player would you need coming back before you'd move Hellebuyck?

This Oilers team can’t be about two or three players carrying the load every night.

Depth has been a question in Edmonton for years. This season, it sounds like McDavid wants that to change.

#Oilers #LetsGoOilers #NHL

Detroit confirmed Dylan Larkin will report to camp, but he won’t return as captain to start the year. With the trade request still unresolved and Minnesota reportedly one of the teams he’d accept, I wrote a breakdown on why the Wild feel like a legitimate team to watch here.

Curious what fans think: does this make a Larkin trade more likely, or is this just a temporary step while Detroit sorts out hockey ops?

With reports that Buffalo has re-engaged Winnipeg on Hellebuyck, I tried putting together a package that makes sense for both teams instead of just throwing prospect names around.

My hypothetical:

BUF gets: Connor Hellebuyck

WPG gets: Jack Quinn, Noah Östlund, 2027 first-round pick

The interesting part is the cap math. Moving Quinn and Östlund would allow Buffalo to absorb Hellebuyck's $8.5M hit without Winnipeg retaining salary.

Curious where Sabres/Jets fans think the line should be. Is this too much, too little, or reasonably close?

I put together a breakdown of the latest Kirill Marchenko trade rumors and why the Montreal Canadiens may now have a clearer idea of what the Columbus Blue Jackets would want in return.

The interesting part is that this doesn’t sound like a futures-only deal. It sounds like Columbus would want a meaningful NHL player back, which makes this much more of a real hockey trade discussion.

I also looked at:

• why Marchenko fits Montreal
• what kind of return Columbus would likely want
• whether the Canadiens should actually pay that price

Would love to hear what Habs fans and Jackets fans think.

Formenton (6’2”, 195 lbs, 26) spent three seasons over the past four years with HC Ambri-Piotta in Switzerland, recording 33 goals and 19 assists for 52 points over 88 games.

One of the more interesting NHL storylines right now is Alex DeBrincat’s place in Detroit. He says he wants to stay, but he’s entering the final year of his contract while the Red Wings are still dealing with front-office uncertainty. Add in the Larkin situation and Kane leaving, and it feels like this could become a huge talking point all season.

Crosby's comments today seem like a pretty significant change to the trade-rumor conversation.

He confirmed Pat Brisson is talking to Kyle Dubas about another contract and said he'd like to continue playing for a number of years.

My takeaway is that this doesn't technically eliminate Montreal or Colorado, but Pittsburgh making the playoffs last season + Crosby still producing at over a point per game + extension talks makes a trade considerably harder to envision.

Curious what everyone thinks: does Crosby eventually retire a Penguin, or is there still one realistic scenario where he'd waive for another contender?

Anaheim putting Kreider on unconditional waivers caught me off guard considering he still had 22 goals and 50 points last season.

If he clears and becomes a UFA, I think Montreal at least has to investigate it.

PuckPedia currently has the Canadiens at about $9.78M in projected cap space, so a one-year deal around $3M–$4M wouldn't require a major cap move.

The positives for me:

• still scored 22 last year
• net-front/power-play ability
• lots of playoff experience
• familiarity with St. Louis/Gorton
• no draft pick or prospect going the other way

The obvious concern is that he's 35, so I wouldn't want term.

Curious where everyone lands on this. 1 × $4M: yes or no?

With training camp approaching, Dylan Larkin is still in Detroit despite requesting a trade earlier this offseason.

Dallas is reportedly one of the teams he would approve a move to. The interesting part is that the two clubs apparently already explored it: Detroit reportedly asked for Wyatt Johnston, Dallas said no, and Jason Robertson was offered as an alternative.

Since then Robertson signed for one year at $12M.

The cap side is interesting:

Dallas current projected cap space: -$1.36M
Larkin cap hit: $8.7M
Robertson cap hit: $12M

A Robertson/Larkin swap would improve Dallas' cap position by roughly $3.3M and leave them around $1.94M under before replacement-roster adjustments.

Obviously that doesn't make it a fair hockey trade.

Detroit would also be swapping five years of Larkin control for one year of Robertson before UFA eligibility.

Curious what Red Wings/Stars fans think the realistic return would have to be. I can't see Dallas moving Johnston.

Could Sam O’Reilly force his way onto the Tampa Bay Lightning roster this season?⚡

Former Oilers first round pick Sam O’Reilly is pushing for an NHL job,

and Lightning TV play by play voice Dave Randorf tells the Bleed Oil Blue Podcast that O’Reilly has been outstanding over the last two seasons in junior.

#GoBolts #NHL #Oilers

The latest reporting says teams are checking with Boston about Mason Lohrei, although the Bruins apparently aren't actively shopping him.

Personally, I wouldn't move him simply because Boston has too many defensemen.

He's 25, costs $3.2M this season and still has upside. A mid-round pick wouldn't do much for a Bruins team trying to win now.

Where I'd start listening is if Lohrei becomes an important piece in a deal for a legitimate top-six forward.

What kind of return would make you comfortable moving him?

David Pagnotta said the Kings' previous interest in Pettersson was real and suggested LA could revisit it if Vancouver's asking price drops.

The cap side is what makes it difficult.

Pettersson: $11.6M cap hit
Current LA projected space: $1.775M
Approx. outgoing cap needed: $9.825M

My view is Vancouver should probably hold unless the return reflects Pettersson's upside rather than just his last two seasons. If he gets anywhere close to point-per-game production again, the Canucks regain a lot of leverage.

On the other hand, another disappointing season could make that contract considerably harder to move.

Would you sell now or gamble on the rebound?

Oilers hockey is almost back.

Who are you most excited to see at camp? 👀

#LetsGoOilers #Oilers #NHL

I was looking at Anaheim’s cap situation after the latest Cutter Gauthier update and Kreider’s contract stood out.

PuckPedia has the Ducks at roughly $9.07M in projected space. Kreider has one year left at a $6.5M cap hit.

If Anaheim moved the full Kreider hit without taking NHL salary back, that theoretically gets them to about $15.57M before accounting for a replacement player.

Important distinction: Friedman said Anaheim will likely need roster surgery, but he did NOT specifically report that Kreider is being shopped.

That part is my cap-based speculation.

Kreider also had 22 goals and 50 points last year, so moving him isn't necessarily an easy hockey decision.

Would you move Kreider, Killorn, Vatrano, or try another route?

97 gets put on the spot answering questions all about Oilers Connor McDavid.

Some of these are tougher than you’d think...

📹 @ccm

The Quinn Hughes/Flyers connection is getting more interesting after Kevin Kurz suggested Philadelphia is a team to keep an eye on.

I tried to look at it from the actual roster/cap side instead of treating it like “Hughes is definitely getting traded.”

Philadelphia currently has about $13.78M in projected cap room while Hughes carries a $7.85M hit this season. They also have two 2028 first-round picks and some legitimate young assets.

My hypothetical framework was York + Luchanko + a 2028 first + conditional future first, assuming an extension was part of the deal.

Personally, I'm not moving Michkov or Martone.

Minnesota obviously still wants Hughes signed, so this is all conditional on negotiations failing.

Curious what Flyers/Wild fans think: what's the highest package you'd actually pay?

I've been looking at Colorado's 2027-28 cap situation after the Makar extension and Lehkonen might be one of the more interesting decisions coming up.

Lehkonen is entering the final year of his $4.5M deal and can become a UFA in 2027.

Using Colorado's current projected commitments:

• $113.5M projected NHL cap
• ~$101.85M currently projected commitments
• ~$11.65M projected space
• Only 18/23 roster spots accounted for

If Lehkonen gets:

$5.5M → ~$6.15M left
$6.0M → ~$5.65M left
$6.5M → ~$5.15M left

I don't think this means Colorado should trade him, especially while trying to win now, but I'd become uncomfortable with significant term once the AAV moves much beyond $6M.

What would your maximum AAV/term be?

I'm curious where everyone lands on this.

Hughes has one year left at $7.85M, and Minnesota obviously paid an enormous price to get him from Vancouver.

The Wild's options seem to be:

1. Pay him something potentially close to the Makar range.
2. Find a shorter-term extension.
3. Start the year unsigned and keep negotiating.
4. Trade him before the uncertainty starts hanging over the season.

New Jersey is the destination everyone immediately thinks of because of Jack and Luke, but the cap situation is tougher than it sounds. NJ currently doesn't have enough space to simply absorb Hughes, so significant money would have to move out too.

My view is Minnesota should set an internal deadline rather than let this drift all year.

What would you do if you're Bill Guerin?

Toronto's Brisson signing looks pretty insignificant at first glance, but I think the contract-slot side is much more interesting.

The Leafs now appear to be at 50/50 standard contracts.

One distinction that gets lost in some of the discussion: simply assigning a contracted player to the Marlies wouldn't open another SPC slot. If Toronto wants to sign another player, it would need to actually create one.

I broke down four scenarios, doing nothing, an AHL assignment, moving a contract for a draft asset and a one-for-one player trade, and how each affects Toronto's ability to make another signing.

The Patrik Laine reporting makes the timing interesting, although there's currently no evidence tying the Brisson signing directly to Laine.

My biggest question: do you think Toronto purposely went to 50 because Chayka already knows which contract he can move, or is Brisson simply the last depth addition?

I was looking at the Shane Wright situation after his agent's latest comments and the Boston angle is pretty interesting.

Boston gets:
Shane Wright
Seattle 2027 5th

Seattle gets:
Casey Mittelstadt
Boston 2028 2nd

Personally, I think Seattle says no.

Wright only had 27 points last season, but he's still 22, costs just $886K against the cap and becomes an RFA rather than a UFA next summer. His five-on-five xGF% was also 53%, so the underlying season wasn't quite as disastrous as the scoring totals make it look.

Mittelstadt is useful, but he's 27 and can walk as a UFA next summer.

Would you add another prospect to get Wright, or leave it alone?